The United States Environmental Protection Agency said in a release Friday that $80 million worth of dredging and habitat restoration projects that were needed to remove contamination have been completed.

The river had been listed as an "area of concern" in a list of toxic hot spots identified in the 1987 Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement.

The EPA said the area includes the lower Sheboygan River, downstream from the Sheboygan Falls Dam, the entire harbor and nearshore waters of Lake Michigan.

The agency said the area serves as a sink for pollutants, including fecal coliform bacteria, phosphorus and PCBs that lead to algae blooms, fish consumption advisories and contamination sediments.

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